Feeding of cards or like articles from a stack



Feb. 22, 1938. cRlGHTON 2,109,208

FEEDING OF CARDS OR LIKE ARTICLES FROM A STACK Filed Feb. 6, 1957 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 i fl.

vINVENTOR JOHN ("P/SH 701v M ma? ATTORNEY Feb. 22, 1938. J. CRIGHTON FEEDING OF CARDS OR LIKE ARTICLES FROM A STACK Filed Feb. 6, 1937 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 l N V EN TOR do/wv CFP/EHTO/V Feb. 22, 1938. J. CRIGHTON FEEDING OF CARDS OR LIKE ARTICLES FROM A STACK Filed Feb. 6, 1937 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR JOHN CR/SHTOA/ ATTORNEY Feb. 22, 1938- J. CRIGHTON 2,109,208

FEEDING OF CARDS OR LIKE ARTICLES FROM A STACK Filed Feb. e, 1937 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR JqH/v own/T041 M )1. HW

ATTORNEY UNITED STATES z,1o9,20s-

PATENT OFFlC FEEDING OF CARDS OB LIKE ARTICLES 7 FROM A STACK John Crighton, London, England, assignor to American Machine & Foundry Company, New York, N. Y., a corporation of New Jersey Application February 6, 1937, Serial No. 124,497 In Great Britain February 13, 1936 14 Claims.

This invention relates to the feeding of cartons in packing machines and has particular reference to machines in which the lowest card-like article, such as a carton in a stack of cartons, is fed by a reciprocating tooth element or elements to feed rolls which deliver it to appropriate mechanism for subsequent operations.

The invention is particularly applicable to the feeding of the slide in connection with the packing of cigarettes in slide and shell cartons and for convenience will be described in association with such machine.

An object of the invention is to provide improved and simplified means for displacing or moving the carton into the path of the reciprocating feed tooth element or elements, such means being of the nature of a self-contained unit which may readily be applied to a feeding machine of the character in question.

According to a feature of the invention the card or slide displacing means comprises a pivotally mounted suction cylinder having a suction nozzle rigidly mounted thereon and means for oscillating the cylinder and for reciprocating the piston to produce the suction effect.

According to a further feature a stop may be provided adapted to hold the displaced card or' portion thereof in the path of the reciprocating feed tooth or teeth when the suction nozzle is removed from the carton.

According to another feature the stack of slides may be provided with a three-point support, the leading point being arranged centrally and having a supporting surface inclined upwardly in the direction of feed.

Further features of invention will be hereinafter described and defined in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings:-

Figure 1 is a side elevation partly in section showing the suction cylinder in its raised position,

Figure 2 is a plan, and

Figure 3 is an end elevation.

Figures 4 and 5 are end elevation and plan re- 45 spectively of a modification concerning the tooth feed device.

In carrying the invention into effect according to one convenient mode in its application, by way of example, to the feeding of slides in connection with packing in slide and shell cartons, the slides ID are arranged in a vertical stack and are adapted to be fed from the bottom of the stack. The slides are arranged horizontally in a substantially flat condition and are positioned, at the corners of the sections which form the side walls of the slide, by vertical adjustable guiding elements ll, I2, l3, ll. The two rear guides l3 and I4 are provided with supporting ledges IS. The forward tuck-in flaps Illa of the slide are supported by a centrally arranged tongue piece 16 the surface of which is inclined upwardly in the direction of feed so that the slide as it is fed forwardly is given a slight rising movement. The supporting surface Ilia of the tongue I6 is curved transversely so that the slide engages the surface bypoint or line contact. Above the inclined curved surface Ilia a stop I1 is provided which is mounted upon an adjustable carrier I8 so that the stop may be adjusted vertically to provide just sufficient space between it and the tongue piece l6 for a single slide to pass through. The lower face Ha of the stop I! is curved as i seen in Figure 3. ff- Adjacent the rear tuck-in flaps of the slides soastol-projectjbelow the lowest slide in-the o stack is 'a'movable'stop element I9 which may. comprise a-flat'spring. This stop l9 iscarriedl g by a bracket 20 and is adapted to give way as the rear flap "lb ofa slide-is brought downand then springs forward to engage'above the'slide flap and retain it in position for engagement by a reciprocating feeding tooth 2 I.

Located beneath the stack is a reciprocating feed bar 22 on which feeding projections or teeth" 2| are mounted, the teeth being adapted to err-1 gage the rear endflap of the bottom slide in the stack and feed the slide forwardly through the" space between the tongue l6 and stop I! to a pair of feed rolls 23, 24 by which the slide is g fed to appropriate mechanism for subsequent operations. I Mounted below the stack is a suction cylinder 28 which is provided with an arm 29 pivoted on a horizontal axis 30 to a fixed part whereby the cylinder may be oscillated about said axis. The

pivotal axis 30 of the cylinder is arranged forwardly of the cylinder and at the rear end a suction nozzle 3| is rigidly mounted upon the cylinder and projects upwardly therefrom. The upper end of the nozzle may comprise a flexible mouthpiece.

The cylinder is arranged so that when it is oscillated upwardly the nozzle 3| engages the lowest slide in the stack, the engagement conveniently taking place on the tuck-in flap "lb of the slide. On the downward oscillation ofv the cylinder 28 the suction nozzle 3| is adapted to draw down the tuck-in flap lllb of the slide and bring it past the spring stop l9 herelnbefore mentioned and into the path of the projection or tooth 2| of the feed bar 22.

The oscillations of the cylinder 28 are obtained by a rotary cam 32 engaging a roller 33 mounted upon the cylinder. The roller is mounted 'upon a spindle carried upon an eccentric mounting whereby the displacement of the nozzle relatively to the lowest slide may be adjusted. The cylinder may be held on to the cam by a suitable spring. The cam disc 32 also carries a crank pin 34 which is connected by a link 35 to a lever 36 pivoted at its lower end at 31 and connected at its upper end by a link 38 to the piston rod 39 of the cylinder whereby the piston 40 is reciprocated and the desired suction eflect produced- At a suitable position a port 4| is provided in the cylinder wall, such port being adapted to be uncovered by movement of the piston in a left-hand direction to destroy the suction and release the slide from the suction nozzle at the appropriate moment.

The feed rolls 23, 24 deliver the slide to a further pair of feed rolls 25, 26 with which a reciprocating feeding tooth 21 is associated by which the slide is finally delivered; for example, to the carrier of a rotary table of a packing machine.

The reciprocating feeding 'tooth 21 is pivoted upon an oscillatory lever 42 carried by a rockshaft 43. This shaft has also mounted upon it a lever 44 to one arm of which a cam lever 45 is pivotally connected. The cam lever is provided with a roller 46 engaging the rotary cam 41 whereby the shaft 43 is rocked and the feeding tooth 21 reciprooated. The tooth 21 is spring-pressed andengages in a groove 43 in the support 49. The lever 42 and feeding tooth 21 are located in the space provided between the spaced surfaces of the feeding rolls 25 and 23 (see Figure 2). As the slide I0 is fed forward by the rolls 25 and 2B the feeding tooth 21 recedes and on its next forward reciprocation engages the rear edge of the slide so that when the rolls 25 and 25 impart no further feed the tooth 21 will take up the feed and deliver the slide to the rotary table or other appropriate mechanism.

The cam lever 45 is provided with a guiding slot 50 and the roller 46 is held up to the cam by a spring 5|.

The feeding teeth 2| are reciprocated by the crank disc 52 to which the tooth supporting slide 22 is coupled by a link 53. The crank disc 52 is mounted upon the shaft 54 which is driven from the cam shaft 55 by spur gears 56, 51, (see Fig. 2). The gear 58 also meshes with a gear by which the cam 41 is rotated and from the last mentioned gear a drive is derived for the feed rolls 23, 24 and 25, through spur gearing.

In operation the cam 32 swings the cylinder 23 and brings the nozzle 3| upwardly into contact with the lowest slide which is held onto the nozzle 3| by the suction produced by the outward movement of the piston. As the cam 32 continues to rotate the cylinder is lowered, bending down the flap of the slide. The rear edge of the slide is moved past the spring stop I!) and is thus prevented from springing back when released from the nozzle which occurs when the suction is destroyed by the piston moving past the port 4|, (see Fig. 1). With the parts in this position the slide will still be supported upon the ledges IS. The feed bar 22 then moves forward, the teeth 2| therein engaging the lowered end of the slide and feeding the slide forward so that it is released from the ledges 5. moves forwardly and into the feed rollers 23, 24.

The feed rollers 23, 24 feed the slide into the second pair of rollers 25, 23 and finally the reciprocating tooth 21 abuts against the edge of the rear flap lb and completes the feeding action.

It will be noted that the transverse walls of the forward stack guides II and I2 are cut away at their bottom ends so that they offer no obstruction to the feeding of the lowest slide from the stack. In this connection it will be noted that the .slides are supported in the stack by a three-point suspension, i. e., by the rear ledges I5 and the central tongue piece l6 whereby their removal from the stack is greatly facilitated.

By upwardly inclining the supporting surface of the tongue piece It the tendency to feed two cards at the same time is avoided.

In the form of apparatus above described the rear supports I5 for the stack of slides are associated with the side walls of the slide. This leaves the tuck-in flaps and end walls as it were unsupported, with the possibility of more than one flap being sucked down at a time by the suction nozzle.

This possibility may be overcome according to the modification shown diagrammatically in'Figures 4 and 5 in which the rear end of the slides are supported by their tuck-in flaps resting upon lateral supporting bars 58. These bars are laterally adjustable and are provided with nose portions having inclined ends 59.

Where the flap of the lowest slide is sucked down it is bowed as indicated in Figure 4 and for this reason it is preferred to shape the holddown spring stop It! by forking the lower end, as at I91 in Fig. 4.

In view of the bowing of the slide-flap it is necessary to shape the ends of the reciprocating teeth 2| so that only point contact is obtained at first which is followed by a fall with feeding contact. This is done by inclining the upper edge 2 la as will be seen in plan in Figure 4. This ensures the teeth 2| first engaging the bowed flap at the lowest point and as near to the spring stop l9 as possible.

In addition to ensuring that only one slide is sucked down at a time, the bowing of the slide flap makes a. more rigid card for pushing from the bottom of the stack when the feed teeth 2| come into action.

The ledges I 5 may be retained as these may be found useful in supporting the stack of slides while adjusting the positions of the supporting bars 58.

It will be obvious that the invention is not limited to the feeding or positioning of the slides of slide and shell cartons but may be applied to the feeding of other cards or sheets from a stack.

I claim:

1. In mechanism for feeding cards, such as the slides of slide and shell cartons, from a stack, wherein a reciprocating tooth feeding device successively feeds the cards from the bottom of the stack, card displacing means comprising a suction cylinder mounted to oscillate toward and from the lowermost card of the stack, and provided with a reciprocable piston, a suction nozzle having a flexible mouthpiece movable with said cylinder, means for oscillating the cylinder to advance the nozzle into contact with the lowest card and to displace the card into the path of a reciprocating feed tooth, and means synchronized with the cylinder oscillating means for causing relative movement between said oscillat- The slide thus ing cylinder and its-piston to produce the suction effect.

2. Mechanism for feeding cards from a stack as claimed in claim 1, wherein a rotary cam is provided for oscillating the cylinder, said cam engaging a roller carried by the cylinder.

3. Mechanism for feeding cards from a stack as claimed in claim 1, wherein a rotary cam is provided for oscillating the cylinder, said cam engaging a roller carried by the cylinder, said roller being adjustable relatively to the cylinder.

4. Mechanism for feeding cards from a stack as claimed in claim 1 wherein a rotary cam is provided for oscillating the cylinder, said cam engaging a roller carried by the cylinder, a crank carried by the cam shaft, said crank coupled to a pivoted lever, said lever coupled to the piston of said oscillating cylinder.

5. Mechanism for feeding cards from a stack as claimed in claim 1, wherein a stop is provided for holding the displaced card in the path of the reciprocating feed tooth when the suction efi'ect ceases, the oscillating cylinder drawing down the rear edge of the lowest card past said stop.

6. Mechanism for feeding cards from a stack as claimed in claim 1 wherein a leaf spring stop lies in the path of the displaced card for holding the card in the path of the reciprocating feed tooth when the suction effect ceases, the oscillating cylinder drawing down the rear edge of the lowest card past thestop;

7. In mechanism for feeding cards from a stack such as the slides of slide and shell cartons,

a reciprocating tooth feed; for successively feeding 35,

the cards from the bottomvof the stack, stack supporting means affording 'a threepoint support, comprising a pairv of supporti'ng elements for the rear of the slide and a forward central element having a stationary, transversely curved card engaging surface which is upwardly inclined in the direction of feed.

8. Mechanism for feeding cards from a stack as claimed in claim '7 wherein a vertically adjustable gate element is located above the forward supporting element. a

9. Mechanism for feeding cards from a stack as claimed in claim 7 wherein a vertically adjustable gate element is located above the forward supporting element, the opposed surfaces of said elements being curved transversely of the direction of feed to present line contact for the cards.

10. Mechanism for feeding slides from a stack as claimed in claim '7 wherein the rear supporting elements engage the rear tuck-in flaps of the slides, the supporting surfaces of said elements being inclined, said elements being laterally adjustable.

11. Mechanism for feeding slides from a stack as claimed in claim 7 wherein the rear supporting elements engage the rear tuck-in flaps of the slides, the reciprocating tooth feed comprising a pair of spaced teeth the card engaging parts of which are rearwardly and outwardly inclined.

12. Mechanism for feeding cards from a stack comprising an oscillating suction cylinder having a suction nozzle for engaging a card and displacing it into the path of a reciprocating feed tooth, said tooth delivering the cards to spaced pairs of feed rolls, a table over which said rolls advance each card, said table having a recessed face, and another reciprocating tooth device havinga tooth adapted to slide in said face recess for engaging the rear edge of a card to feed said card when it has passed out of the influence of said feed rolls.

13. Mechanism for feeding cards as claimed in claim 12 wherein said tooth device is mounted upon an oscillating lever and in which provision is made of a rotary cam for rocking said lever, said cam being driven from the means which oscillate the suction cylinder.

14. In mechanism for feeding cards, such as the slides of slide and shell cartons, from a stack wherein a reciprocating tooth feeding device successively feeds the cards from the bottom of the stack, card displacing means comprising a suction cylinder mounted to oscillate about a horizontal axis, and provided with a reciprocable piston, a suction nozzle rigidly mounted on the cylinder, means for oscillating the cylinder to raise the nozzle into contact with the lowest card and displace the card into the path of a reciprocating feed tooth, and means synchronized with the cylinder oscillating means for reciprocating the piston of said cylinder to produce the suction effect.

JOHN CRIGHTON. 

